Edward and Jasper have problems with FINALS?
by Tail writer
Summary: Ever wonder what happens to the Cullens around finals time? With Edward's mind reading and Jasper's ability with emotions, things sure do get interesting!Rated T because I'm paranoid. Criticism of any kind accepted! Going to be multi-chapter now. R&R!
1. From Edward's eyes

EPOV

It was that time of year again, the worst part of going to high school- for me, anyway. School was mostly a bore; people's thoughts were the only thing (besides the science and history textbooks) that changed from school to school and year to year.

But now was the one point in the school year that I dreaded: Finals. "But, Edward," you must be saying, "You have been around for over 100 years. You know more than the textbooks

ever could. You can _read minds_ for goodness' sake! Finals should _never_ pose a problem to you! You can just read the mind of the teacher and get the answers if, heaven forbid, you don't  
know them. Why are finals such a big deal, anyway?"

Well, I may be able to block thoughts, but you try blocking the thoughts of the entire student body as they try to cram in every bit of information possible in the short period known as

lunch hour- trying to gain as much advantage over the other students in what would be, for them at least- "life determining" tests. It's not as easy as it sounds; you have people quizzing their friends on the periodic table at the same moment that your neighbor across the table from you is studying Latin

declensions. Then add in a few more kids trying to memorize the Constitution, a handful trying to recall various passages from Thoreau and Shakespeare, and multiply the result by, say a few hundred kids. See what I mean?

These kids' thoughts are so _desperate, _so _determined, _that they break through my mental filter that usually blocked out the unwanted intrusions into my personal thought-space. I glance over at my family, suddenly aware that I had most likely been inundating Jasper with my overwhelmed emotions and making his situation that much worse.

_I'm going out to the car if it doesn't get any better, _Jasper said to me. _If you want to join me, feel free._

I nodded gratefully at my brother, but slightly motioned with my head towards Bella's table, where she was studying with Alice for her own finals. Instead of escaping, I would concentrate on the blank slate that was my Bella's mind. If I could just focus on only _her_ thoughts, or the quiet that was her mind, I might be able to avoid leaving.

She was certain to pass with flying colors. She had a determined, concentrated expression; Alice was no doubt quizzing her with her hardest material. She was in good hands, my Bella was; with Alice's gift at her disposal, my sister would realize immediately what Bella needed to study more in depth. If she had problems with a certain kind of question, Alice would still know if she would pass if she got a question wrong or not.

_"I don't know if I'm going to pass Chemistry." _

_"Oh,dear, I'm going to fail Geometry for sure. There's no way I can memorize all these postulates and theorems before tomorrow."_

_"Yes, Bella! Way to go, girl! Alice is doing such a good job at preparing her! I hope I do as well.. " _This last comment made me smile. Even with all the stress of finals upon her, Angela was still kind enough to wish her friend well. Bella had done a good job in finding such a good friend.

But the worried thoughts of the rest of the cafeteria were still rushing in. I didn't think I could take much more; if concentrating on Bella didn't help, I'm not sure what would, aside from escaping altogether.

Glancing once again at my family, I immediately was reassured that everything would be taken care of; my absence would be attributed to a stomach bug, a text from Alice assured me. As I got up to leave, Emmett playfully shoved me away.

Now was the time to act. I hurriedly rushed up from my seat to the cafeteria door, hand over my mouth as if I was going to throw up. It didn't matter if I was running a little bit faster than the average human; they would run just as fast if they were in the same "situation" that I was in.

I slowed down as I got to the restroom, and was met by Jasper. _"I'm skipping as well. Your emotions mixed with everyone else's were too much to handle. I already signed us out at the office; we both are suffering from food poisoning." _He grinned as he thought the last statement, and we both headed out to the Volvo to escape the horrors that were finals.


	2. What Jasper felt

JPOV

Finals time; that means the school year is almost over and I am that much closer to freedom from the constant temptations that human blood presents me with. But it also meant that one of the worst parts of the year emotionally was upon me. The stress and anxiety was enough to drive me out of my mind.

In my 50 or so years with the Cullen's, I had developed ample experience with attending high school, and I could already tell that this year, finals were going to be much more difficult. Emotions, as they usually were at this time of the academic year, were at the breaking point, and Edward's newfound love for Bella was not helping matters. The stress and worry that was pouring off the humans was only magnified by the increased "oddness" that Edward had been showing lately. The humans just couldn't see the love that Edward had for quiet, clumsy Bella. To them they were just two people acting strangely out of the ordinary.

And then, of course, you had to take into account the effect her presence had on the community- she had caused quite a stir among the male population of Forks High; Mike Newton and Tyler Crowley were evidence of the fact. It was quite humorous to Emmett when they would attempt to ask her on dates, although it only succeeded in embarrassing Bella further, and then, of course, there was the infamous time that Tyler, Eric and Mike all asked her to the dance earlier in the year…

The majority of the lunchroom was focused on studying for their upcoming tests, while at the same time worried about the results they had received for the exams taken earlier in the week.

I could also tell by Edward's expression that he was having a hard time with the humans' thoughts; his fingers were pinching the bridge of his nose, and he was giving off an intense feeling of frustration and irritation. Also mixed in with the potpourri of his feelings was a sense of stress and, strangely, a brief burst of anger, followed by guilt. I concentrated on easing some of his suffering; that meant one less mind that was anxious for the day to end. One more peaceful mind gave me one less to worry about.

Interested by Edward's unexpected surge of anger and protectiveness, I began focusing on the humans in the lunchroom with us. Usually by avoiding the feelings of the humans I would be less overwhelmed, both by the scent of their blood and their emotions, but to figure out this problem I had to delve into the depths of the human feelings surrounding our table. I knew that I was asking for trouble, especially around this time of the academic year, but I _had _to figure out what was causing my brother's anger to prevent further suffering on both our parts. My curiosity was also aroused, I must admit; nothing had really made him act this way before, especially not with those accompanying emotions. Unless it was Bella- she would definitely cause some protectiveness on his part, especially since she's so clumsy.

Beginning to scan the room, I was suddenly pummeled with the overwhelming sense of anxiety and stress that the rest of the student body was experiencing. Just about every student I could see was studying rigorously, trying to cram in as much information possible in the small time allotted to lunch. This, of course, meant that each of the students preparing for their finals was also contributing to the melee of emotions I was currently experiencing.

Refocusing my attention to Edward's behavior, I decided to zero in on the area surrounding Bella's table, knowing that Edward would probably focus on Bella's blank slate of a mind to escape the frenzied thoughts of the student body surrounding him,  as I did to my family to escape the human emotions. My family's emotions were, of course, distinctly less stressed, all of us having gone through high school at least twice, if not three times. Nobody at the Cullen table was the least bit worried about their upcoming finals, which is what made them such a good block from the rest of the students' emotions.

Once I had dampened the onslaught of feelings enough to be bearable, I began looking for emotions that were out of the ordinary. These would have to be the instigators of Edward's feelings and thoughts. I knew that Bella's table was the most likely place for such offensive- for him at least- feelings.

Bella, of course was very focused and concentrated.

As I scanned the people surrounding Bella, I took a brief moment to assess my Alice. She was, as always, bouncing ever so-slightly in her seat. Unlike so many of her tablemates, she was exuding a sense of excitement and anticipation as she quizzed Bella. I knew that she would be using her visions as a gauge for the information that Edward's human had retained during the process of her studying, and would give Bella the best preparation possible for her all-important tests. After all, this would only be Bella's first time through high school, and she would need to do well if she wanted to get good scores. Alice was still adamant that Bella would eventually be one of us, although she hadn't told any of the others just yet.

Bella kept growing increasingly more frustrated as lunch wore on and Alice kept quizzing, so I helped her out, sending her bursts of extra focus and calm. I knew the effect Alice often had on humans firsthand and that she often forgot that not everybody has boundless energy and can keep up with her vigorous pace. She also would forget that her quick changes of mind that she made after experiencing one of her visions made it difficult for humans to keep up. After Bella started attacking her work with new energy, I knew immediately that my assistance was helping her cope with my boundless wife and I turned back to the emotions of the humans surrounding her.

Ah ha! So that's who the culprit is! No surprises there, unfortunately. Wherever he went, that Mike Newton was bound to cause trouble, especially when it came to Bella. He seemed to be giving off an aura of jealousy mixed with a tinge of amusement and lust: the perfect explanation for Edward's actions- especially the lust.

As I was "un-focusing", so to speak, I was suddenly bombarded with the feelings of everyone else in the room. My family, namely Edward, was only magnifying the problem.

_I'm going out to the car if this doesn't get any better,_ I thought to Edward,_ If you want to join me, feel free. _I could tell that he was getting overwhelmed, and sent him a bit of calm along with a touch of tolerance. He slightly shook his head and motioned to Bella's table. He was going to attempt to concentrate on her mind again. I knew he couldn't last much longer though, despite how hard he concentrated on her.

As quickly as I could, I left the cafeteria, making sure to catch Alice's eye as I left, resolute in my decision to skip the rest of the day; this way, she would be able to tell me what I should do to explain our absence.

My phone vibrated in my pocket at the same moment that Alice got that familiar expression on her adorable face.

_You are going to go down to the office. I just saw you talking with Ms. Cope, telling her that you both have food poisoning. I'll text Edward once he's out of Bella-land. He'll be shortly behind you, you'll have enough time to go to the office and be back before he leaves the room. _That was another plus to being a vampire. You didn't have to use those annoying and grammatically incorrect abbreviations, since so many humans were quick at texting as well. Complete sentences were much easier to understand.

I nodded at her message, knowing she saw it, and smiling ever so slightly at the food poisoning line. Edward would get a kick out of that. He just loves irony. I nudged Emmett, who was sitting next to me, and showed him the text.

He murmured, "Ok, I'll let everyone know. Take care of that stomach, now, ya hear? If you didn't eat any bad tomatoes, then it wouldn't torture you!" Ah, that Emmett. Always trying to make a joke, even if it wasn't funny. As if I would eat a tomato anyway. I shuddered at the thought.

_Well, at least that makes it more believable,_ I thought.

I quickly ran out of the cafeteria, one hand over my mouth, doubled over as if in pain. It didn't matter if I was running faster than usual- humans usually did in my 'situation'.

Once at the office, I told Ms. Cope the proper information, Alice texting me exactly what to say, and headed back down towards the cafeteria, having told the secretary I was "checking on my brother". I met him just as he was slowing down past the men's room.

_"I'm skipping as well. Your emotions mixed with everyone else's were too much to handle. I already signed us out at the office; we both are suffering from food poisoning," _I thought to him.

We then walked to the Volvo, grateful that we had once again escaped another year of finals. Makeup exams were always more interesting anyway; people usually had cheats from their friends, and were always more relaxed.

"_Another year gone, another year gone, another one bites the dust," _I sang in my head. Boy was I glad that today's school was over. Now if only I could figure out what Edward heard that made him so angry...

I'd have to ask him on the way home.

* * *

**Thanks go out to everyone that reviewed/faved or put me on alert! You guys are the reason this story is now going to be multichapter. There was just so much that I wanted Jasper to say, and I ended up writing almost 5 pages! The next chapter (which will be coming MUCH sooner than this one did) will include Jasper and Edward's conversation in the car, and possibly some Alice and Bella study time. **

**-Thanks especially to bronzehairedgirl620 for beta-ing and putting up with the long wait! **

**Please review and tell me what you think- and if you have any details you want in the next chapter, tell me those and I'll do my best to put them in! Thanks again!**


	3. Ike attacks! AN

AN ch 4

AN ch 4

Hey all! Sorry this isn't a chapter, but just wanted to let you know that I'll probably be out of commission tomorrow and Friday, so I most likely won't be updating anytime soon. School's already been cancelled for Thursday and Friday due to Hurricane Ike, and there has been a voluntary evacuation called for my area.

So since I'll be likely headed either to Dallas or Austin, I'll probably get a bit more writing done than I usually do during the week, what with traffic and such. So you may have an update when I get back. That is, if I still have a house... (It's my first experience with a hurricane, and they say there's a first time for everything...)

Thank you so much for all the patience! I've been working on two different stories for school assignments lately, and AP English is killing me.. but I know what happens in DM, and "Finals" is coming along slowly but surely.

Question to HP fic readers: Would you read a oneshot of a small Hermione discovering her powers? ...I wrote it originally for children's theatre, and in its current state is picture-book size, but can be expanded easily. (my only hint is that it involves a toothbrush.)

Thanks again, and I'll update as soon as I'm able to! (They are now saying that half of all power poles will be snapped, and transformers will blow.. it doesn't look good, especially with our giant glass picture window in its current uncovered state.) So it may be longer than I had thought before I'm up and running.

Tail writer


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